“Don’t jump ship. Stay the course”
I recently had a conversation with a friend of mine when this came up.
As he continued sharing his journey of fulfilling his own purpose in life, I began to think about mine.
In particular, I began to think about my journey as a public speaker.
March 8th, 2020.
The day that I experienced my first test, financially, as a speaker.
I had multiple speaking engagements booked for the months of April and May, when I heard the news.
“I apologize, but we will be canceling this year’s event due to COVID-19 ...” the email read.
I sat there, in silence, with tears streaming down my face, as I was embracing the reality of the matter.
I had picked up my phone and called my closest friends.
“They’re all canceled,” I said.
Without hesitation, one of my friends said, “Stay the course. Those opportunities will come back in one way or another.”
Fortunately, through reframing the adverse circumstance into a learning opportunity, and with the help from my family/friends, I was able to overcome the feeling of what appeared to be lost opportunities relatively quickly.
It took some time, months if I’m being honest, for those opportunities to reappear in a different form.
In fact, this is one of the elements I continuously try to remind myself of.
Just because I am able to reframe adversity into opportunity relatively quickly, it still takes time for new opportunities to present themselves.
I could have jumped ship and folded my hand, but instead I stayed the course.
In fact, had I not gone through this entire experience, I would not have learned about new industries for me to explore, met people who have become a significant part of my journey, and developed even greater resilience than I had before.
Now, I believe, there’s a difference between pursuing something that’s not in alignment with who I am and something that is in alignment with who I am.
Public speaking is in alignment with who I am.
I know this because of my ability to deeply connect with others and hold a space where individuals can fully be themselves.
As you continue on your journey, I invite you to not jump ship and stay the course, if you’re in alignment with what you’re pursuing.
